It's not the destination; It's the ride! This is the story of my adventure!
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Big Laguna Lake: January 12, 2008.
NEWS: (January 21, 2008) - It's been snowing all day here in Julian, but nothing has stuck thus far. We have a better chance of heavy rain & snow later in the week. Harry visited last week. We took his 12 inch telescope out to Inspiration Point every night to check out the stars. The opticical quality of his eye pieces and mirror were just as good as the 14 and 16 inch telescopes the guy down the street uses. I was very impressed. We also took a hike through Big Laguna Meadow. Click here to view the photos. The place reminded me so much of the meadows you see near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Great place to ski or snowshoe in the winter or hike in the spring.
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Ed shows his approval at the lip of Cedar Creek Falls: January 8, 2008
Cedar Creek Falls: January 8, 2008
NEWS: (January 9, 2008) - After the heavy rains, Ed and I decided that an unplanned trip to Cedar Creek Falls was in order. So with only 12 hours of planning, we met up in Julian and headed down Eagle Peak Road towards Saddleback and Cedar Creek Falls. It was an epic day. There was a lot of water in Cedar Creek and the falls were roaring. Several military helicopters and one sheriffs helicopter flew up the canyon and right up to the lip of the falls. Seems everyone wanted to check out the show... and now, you can too! Click here to view the falls!
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Rain! In the burn areas, the healing begins: January 4-7, 2008
NEWS: (January 7, 2008) - Another significant storm slams Southern California in what is turning out to be a very atypical La Nina! Over the course of the past four days, our rain gage here in Julian has recorded 8.21 inches... bringing our current seasonal rainfall to 15.37 inches! Widespread reports of 6 to 8 inches of rain has fallen all across the San Diego Mountains with Palomar Mountain receiving more than 10 inches! The streams are running full of water, the local ponds and reservoirs are beginning to spill, and the landscape is greening up! Come spring the burn areas will be just spectacular! The storm also brought a couple rounds of wind. Gusts over 50 mph were observed in town while 60 mph winds were observed in Cuyamaca. It's been one hell of a weekend! Here are a few photos. Ed and I plan to check out Cedar Creek Falls in the morning. We expect there to be plenty of water going over the falls, so I'll post some pictures upon our return.
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Snow showers transform Julian and the San Diego Mountains into a winter wonderland: December 8, 2007
The Fit collects snow while parked under our Oak Trees.
Fresh coat of snow at our home in Julian on Saturday night.
NEWS: (December 9, 2007) - The snow started falling at about six in the evening and was still falling when I went to bed at ten. It must not have snowed much longer than that though as the amount of snow on the ground when I woke up was not much different than when I went to bed. There was about 1.5 inches of snow on the ground when I left for work at 4:30 am. Mount Laguna to our south picked up 8 inches while the southern slopes of Palomar to the north picked up a foot! For whatever reason, Julian missed out on the heavier stuff. That's ok though... not bad for an early season snow. We've now had 5.25 inches of precipitation over the past two weekends which brings our season total rainfall to date to 6.44 inches! Hopefully more rain and snow is in store.
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Another weekend storm dumps rain and snow on Julian: December 8, 2007
NEWS: (December 8, 2007) - Woke up this morning to half an inch of snow on the ground in addition to the 1.07 inches of rain we had yesterday. Had a difficult time driving to work this morning as I beat the plows to the highway. Still managed to make it down OK. Looks as though Julian saw at least an inch and a half of snow by mid morning, but some of it has already melted. An upper level low is forecast to slide into the Southern California Bight overnight... and combined with surface cyclogenesis, we should see around 4 inches of snow or more by morning. We shall see. I have to work tomorrow so I won't be able to get any photos until after about 3:00 pm. Luckily, Nicole will be home so she will be able to take lots of photos of our snowy little town in my absence.
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A cutoff low brings 3.38" inches of rain and trace amounts of snow to Julian!
NEWS: (December 2, 2007) - Woke up this morning to a low temperature of 29 degrees! A strong cutoff low moved in from the southwest over the weekend and dumped 3+ inches of rain at the house. Yesterday, a cold front moved in behind the low and brought snow to Julian. At first, all that fell was snow grains. After several hours however, the temperature dropped to 34 degrees and large flakes of snow began to fall. Sporadic snow showers moved across the neighborhood from late morning through about sunset. The ground was a little too wet and warm for any long lasting accumulation. The photo above shows a dusting of snow on Volcan Mountain. Click here for more photos!
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"Skeletons of the Witch Creek Fire"
NEWS: (November 16, 2007) - Posted some Witch Creek Fire damage photos. Crews have been quick to replace all the damaged power poles and road signs. Some people have already cleared their foundations of debris in preparation to rebuild. From the ashes... a glimmer of hope. New growth, mainly grasses, is beginning to show up in some areas in spite of the lack of rain. Looking foward to the eruption of wildflowers this spring in the burn areas.
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DISASTER! 25-30 Mile-Long Fire Line: San Diego County Catches Fire: October 21, 2007
Northeastern Flank of the Witch Fire near Santa Ysabel: October 21, 2007
DISASTER! Poomacha Fire Engulfs the South Slope of Palomar Mountain: October 23, 2007
Smokey Bear can only Watch as San Diego County is Consumed by Wildfire.
NEWS: (November 6, 2007) - San Diego County is now in the recovery stage after a firestorm consumed hundreds of thousands of acres. Santa Ana winds roared to life Sunday morning, breathing life into a dangerously explosive situation. By Sunday night, several large wildfires were racing across the county uncontroled. Thousands of homes were destroyed, large forests burned, hundreds injured, and 10 people were killed. Our town of Julian was spared, but the fires still forced us to flee our home for nearly a week. Our beautiful commute looks more like moonscape now than an Oak Savannah paradise. The highway is lined with bare foundations and lonely chimneys. Recovery has begun, but it will takes decades for some areas to return to their formal glory.
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The magnificent North Rim of the Grand Canyon! October 13, 2007
Hikers check out the view from the North Rim: October 13, 2007
Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta: October 12, 2007
Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta: October 12, 2007
Zion National Park: October 3, 2007
Horse at the Arrowhead B&B near Zion NP: October 2, 2007
Fall color on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon: October 13, 2007
Backside of a waterfall in Zion NP: October 2, 2007
Nicole pets a horse at the Arrowhead B&B near Zion NP: October 2, 2007
Aspens on Sandia Crest in New Mexico: October 11, 2007
NEWS: (November 6, 2007) - Nicole and I are back from our 14 day road trip. It has taken awhile to get the photos online due to the firestorm evacuation and firestorm damage. We finally have internet again so hopefully this means that I can finally get some much need updates completed. The road trip brought us to Zion NP, SLC Utah, Wyoming, Denver Colorado, Boulder Colorado, Norman Oklahoma, Albuquerque New Mexico, Flagstaff Arizona, and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. The purpose of the trip was to shoot Marc and Nikki's wedding in Denver. The photos came out better than expected... in fact they came out fantastic! Once some work has been done with the wedding photos, I will post some online. Until then, enjoy the updates as they come.
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Table settings at Marc and Nikki's rehearsal dinner. This is the only preview I'm going to allow anyone to see at this time. The portrait shots came out great, but until things are organized and such, no people photos will be posted. You'll just have to sit tight.
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What better test subject for a wedding than a candle cake! Shot using the Sigma 20mm lens at F1.8.
Decorative plate on our fireplace mantle.
Ramsey's gettin' big! How big you ask? Scroll down to the photo below!
At 3 months old, Ramsey is almost as big as Tippy. Only 1 month ago, he was half the size of our cat!
NEWS: (September 29, 2007) - Nicole and I are headed out on a 2 week road trip beginning October 1st! First stop is Zion National Park and Angels Landing. Then we're off to Salt Lake City for a day. After visiting with family and friends, we're headed to Denver for Marc and Nikki's wedding. I will be the photographer for their wedding, so I've spent the last couple weeks stocking up on photo supplies, looking at bridal magazines, and getting some excellent tips from our own wedding photographer from last year. I'm excited to test my abilities in a new area of photography. After the wedding, Nicole and I are headed up to Oktoberfest in Boulder to celebrate our 1-year anniversary! Then, it's off to Norman, OK for a brief visit before heading back west to catch the tail-end of the hot air balloon festival in Albuquerque! On the final leg of the trip, we're headed to Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon. We decided to forgo the hotels, so instead we're staying at B&Bs when we're not with friends and family. Look for a huge amount of new photos when we return in 2 weeks!!!
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Fire on the mountain, run boys run! Angel Fire rages in Whispering Pines, Julian: September 15, 2007.
Cal Fire prepares to make a drop on the fire.
View of the Angel Fire from our house in Kentwood in the Pines.
NEWS: (September 16, 2007) - The Angel Fire gave us all a scare as it raged through northern Julian yesterday afternoon. The fire started near Farmers Road just north of town and quickly spread to the east and southeast towards Whispering Pines and the northern end of Kentwood in the Pines. All of Julian was placed under a mandatory evacuation as the fire raced towards homes. At one point, firefighters and law enforcement were unsure if they'd be able to save Julian, especially given that many of the local fire fighting resources had been relocated to help with fires up north. Things are much better now. The fire has burned approximately 1,000 acres and firefighters seem to have the upperhand. Although the winds have picked up considerably ahead of a fast approaching trough of low pressure, temperatures have fallen substantially and the humidty has begun to rise. Volcan Mountain did get burned, however it was mostly the undergrowth that was charred. From what I could tell, all of the 100+ year old oaks and trees on the summit had survived the fire with little or no evidence of burns. However, I could see a few oaks on the desert slopes that had been scorched. UPDATE: It's now 845 PM and the temperature has dropped into the low 50s. The humidity is between 55 and 65 percent! Flames can still be seen on Volcan but the fire does not appear to be spreading much. And now for your viewing pleasure, here are the Angel Fire photos I took over the past two days!
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